-
When Free Will Changes Biblical Prophetic Words
People turn to select passages in the Bible in order to say that everything is predestined by God. But I just open the Bible at random and point to 99.9% of the rest of it to show the opposite. The whole thing is full of human choice after human choice after human choice. In fact,…
-
Getting Hungry for Righteousness
We hunger and thirst for all kinds of things: money, stuff, love, family—and the list goes on. But in the beatitudes Jesus tells us that we’ll really find satisfaction if we pursue righteousness instead. We talk about that and more in today’s episode of JXN Cloud. Join our online church community by logging onto our…
-
God’s Library of Omniscience
Having grown up in the Wesleyan tradition, I’ve always believed that I have free will. I am a free agent, making free choices, even if there are factors at play pushing me in any particular direction. When you grow up with this understanding, you don’t run into the kind of dilemma that some sects of…
-
How Does a Meek Person Inherit Land?
Jesus’ blessings in the beatitudes are often contrary to the way that we think of blessing. For example, we don’t know of many people that get land through “meekness,” but rather though force. So what does Jesus mean when he says, “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth”? Let’s talk about that…
-
The Rationality of Free Will
Rationally, if there’s no free will, then God has designed every last atrocity that has ever happened to us, including rape, torture, murder and a never-ending list of other sins. But if there is free will, then the sins we commit are on our hands. Furthermore, if God is love and we exist because of…
-
Blessed Are Those Who Mourn?
Some cultures are better are mourning than others. What’s so important about mourning and why does Jesus care enough about it to put it into his list of beatitudes? Make sure to further join our online church community by logging onto our Discord server to chat about today’s episode! Here’s the link to get in:…
-
Are Angels Made in the Image of God?
In order to understand the importance of our call to represent God in the world since we are made in his image, we need to recognize the fact that we’re not the only imagers God has created. This is communicated in the opening pages of the Bible where God makes the statement, “Let us make…
-
What Does it Mean to Be “Poor in Spirit?”
As we start our new series on the Beatitudes, we see that the poor in spirit receive the kingdom of Heaven. But what exactly does it mean to be poor in spirit? We talk more about that in today’s episode. Make sure to further join our online church community by logging onto our Discord server…
-
The Image of God in Women and Men
It’s important to note that both men and women are made in the image of God—though the creation story is often used to make women feel subhuman and subservient. Many act as though men were put here to do the real work of carrying out God’s purposes in the world while women were put here…
-
Reconciliation: The Phase Beyond Forgiveness
The ultimate hope of lived out forgiveness is reconciliation. While this doesn’t always happen, it is the hope whenever possible. In today’s episode we talk more about that while Jamin shares a few of his own stories where he had to “bless his enemies” in hopes to find reconciliation. Make sure to further join our…
